Bond boosts Bollinger sales in Asia

Champagne Bollinger’s connection to the James Bond films is helping boost sales of the brand in Asia. “They go crazy for Bond in Asia, which is really helping with brand recognition and giving our sales a boost,” Bollinger president Jérôme Philipon told the drinks business.

“I didn’t appreciate how powerful the Bond brand was for Bollinger in Asia until I saw it. There’s so much hype surrounding the new film Sky Fall out there already," Philipon added. Bollinger has collaborated with the Broccoli family – owners and producers of the James Bond films – for 37 years, in the longest standing relationship between a film series and a brand.

“They originally came to us as they wanted to feature the most British of Champagnes in the film, and we have a big connection to the UK, being the first Champagne to be given the Royal Warrant,” Philipon said. He revealed the brand “hadn’t paid a penny” for it to be featured in the Bond films, but was lucky enough to have an incredibly strong relationship with the Broccoli family.

Having appeared in Casino Royale, Philipon confirmed that Bordeaux Premeir Grand Cru Classé Château Angélus will not be appearing in the forthcoming film. “We had the meeting last week of all the brands involved in the film and Angélus owner Hubert de Boüard was not present,” he said, admitting he is keen to do more with the Bond association due to its positive impact on the brand.

“We’ve got a couple of limited edition Bond-branded bottlings that we’re going to launch in October to coincide with the Sky Fall premier, but I’m sworn to secrecy on the details at the moment,” he said. Directed by Sam Mendez, Sky Fall will have its world premiere in London on 26 October. In addition to Daniel Craig in the role of Bond, it also stars Javier Bardem, Ralph Fiennes, Dame Judy Dench and Helen McCrory.

Outside of Bond, Bollinger is keen to step up its presence as the pouring Champagne at other movie premieres, and will be working with premieres in London, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand and the Middle East in the coming year. The house is also nurturing a number of grape varieties permitted in Champagne that have been abandoned. An experimental plot adjacent to the prestigious Terre Chaud Vieilles Vignes vineyard in Ay is planted with Savagnin, Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Petit Meslier, Gamay, Arbanne and Pinot Teinturier.

“I’m really proud of what we’re doing with these plantings. We want to make the most of our terroir and experiment with all the different grapes and see what works,” Mentzendorff’s marketing and wine director Elizabeth Ferguson said, adding, “These varieties were rejected and abandoned in the Champagne region over time, but with the threat of global warming, the high acid varieties might become a vital component in the blend in the coming years.”

Lafite winery in China underway

Domaines Barons de Rothschild has begun construction of a winery in Penglai in China’s Shandong province in order to capitalise on the thirst for fine wine in Asia. As reported on thedrinksbusiness.com, in partnership with CITIC East China Group, the new winery, in the only coastal wine producing area in Asia, is expected to produce 120,000 bottles of wine a year.

After fifteen years of research on grape planting in Asia, Lafite selected the port town of Penglai as the optimum site for its Chinese property. The company has invested £10m in the 1.73 hectare winery, and the accompanying 25 hectare estate. A completion date for the project has yet to be given. Lafite will plant different kinds of grapes in accordance with soil constituents, without the use of chemical fertilisers.

“The world’s top luxury brands are all very interested in the Chinese market, Rothschild is no exception,” said Zhang Lu, a Shanghai-based analyst at Capital Securities Corp. Outside France, Lafite also owns Bodegas Caro in Argentina and Viña Los Vascos in Chile. Penglai has a quality grape growing area of more than 10,000 hectares.

Wine production in the region has doubled to 140,000 tons in 2011 from 2005, while the number of winemakers increased to 70 from 39 in the same period. Chinese wine imports meanwhile, were worth over US$1.27bn last year, after an annual increase of 88%. According to the latest figures from Vinexpo, Asia is on course to become the world’s second biggest market for wine within the next three years.

Chinese consumers will increase the amount of wine they drink by 54% by 2015 as consumption reaches 1.9 to 2 liters per person, the Vinexpo study found. The value of wine purchases may outpace volume in the next four years, helped by high-end consumption in China, which is now the fifth largest wine market by volume.

Chinese names for Bordeaux revealed

Christie’s auction house has unveiled an official translation of the 61 châteaux in the 1855 classification, after a year of discussions with the estates. As reported on thedrinksbusiness.com, all but four of the châteaux have approved the Chinese translation of their names.

“We have confirmation from all but four châteaux that these Chinese translations are the agreed names for the whole Chinese speaking world,” said Simon Tam (above), Christie’s head of wine in China. “We are trying to make wine as accessible as possible for our clients. Language is the first barrier and we want to break down those barriers,” he added.

The auction house worked with châteaux to agree on a Chinese translation for the 61 estates. Though a small number of châteaux, including Cos d’Estournel, have decided not to take a Chinese name. The translations have been published on a poster (right), which will be unveiled to the trade during the 2012 en primeur week.

The posters will also be given to Christie’s clients and journalists. Tam is hoping that other auction houses and the wider wine trade will adopt the official translation. Christie’s is working on similar translations for properties in Sauternes, the right bank of Bordeaux and Burgundy, which it hopes to release later this year.

China develops thirst for white

China is developing a growing thirst for white wine, according to Vinexpo. As reported on thedrinksbusiness.com, red wine still makes up the vast majority of total wine consumption in China (91%), but white wine drinking rose by 19% last year, with 70% further growth expected by 2015.

Last week, the global wine and spirits exhibition group spelt out its views in Shanghai of the fast-developing Chinese wine market. Dominique Heriard Dubreuil, chairman of both Vinexpo and Rémy Cointreau, said China’s developing taste for white wine presents an educational challenge to vintners worldwide.

“In general, Chinese people don’t like to drink something cold, but white wine is not at its best when warm,” she said. According to Vinexpo, last year China overtook Britain as the fifth largest wine market by volume, behind the US, Italy, France and Germany. Consumption of wine on the mainland and Hong Kong rose by 21.5%.

Within three years, greater China will spend more money on still wines than the UK, and become the world’s second biggest wine consumer by value, after the US. Vinexpo expects China to consume over a billion more bottles annually between now and 2015 – a further 54% increase.

China is also on track to become the world’s biggest Cognac market by 2016, Vinexpo says, forecasting 47% growth between 2011-2015. China is already Cognac’s second largest market, after France. But recently Chinese buyers have complained of having trouble finding the extra-premium spirits they prefer. “In China, people want very old Cognacs, but global inventories of are not extensive,” said Heriard Dubreuil.

Champenois ditching flutes for wine glasses

Champagne houses are moving away from using traditional flutes for their fizz in favour of white wine glasses, according to glassware manufacturer Georg Riedel. “The Champenois are starting to serve their sparklers in white wine glasses as the larger surface areas gives more pronounced aromas, complexity and a creamier texture,” Riedel told the drinks business.

“Flutes are too narrow and don’t allow the aroma and richness of the Champagne to shine as there isn’t enough air space,” Riedel added, revealing that flutes are often mistakenly filled to the top, leaving the wine no room to breathe. Ideally, a flute should only be half full, or, better still, a third full in order to release a Champagne’s aromatic potential,” he said.

In response to demand, Riedel has started making bespoke glasses for several Champagne houses and has developed a new sparkling wine glass more akin to a white wine glass. “Our new glasses don’t look anything like a traditional flute. They’re much bigger and rounder,” Riedel enthused.

Meanwhile, the Austrian has his sights firmly set on China, where he is keen to grow the Riedel brand. “China is a new market for us and our hopes are high for it. We’ve been established in Hong Kong for a while, but it’s time to move our marketing subsidiary to the mainland. “We want to get into the top hotels and restaurants in China, and start branching out into department stores,” he said.

Riedel is confident that the Chinese will embrace the idea of buying different glasses for different wines. “Contrary to what has been said, the Asian palate doesn’t differ from the Western palate. Wine is new to them, but they understand it. You start life as a milk drinker, then you evolve. An understanding of the complexities of wine comes with a certain age. It’s a celebration, and people love to toast in Asia.”

Dom Pérignon 2003 launched in five cities

Last week, as reported on thedrinksbusiness.com, Champagne giant Dom Pérignon hosted five simultaneous international events in London, Hong Kong, Paris, New York and Tokyo, to launch its 2003 vintage – a controversial release due to the extreme heat of the year. With each event linked by satellite, chef de cave Richard Geoffroy introduced the wine Star Wars-style via hologram, appearing as an electric blue spectral figure and answering questions on the vintage from the five cities in turn.

“Everyone was expecting a very powerful, sun-filled and rapidly maturing wine – a real challenge for the creation of Dom Pérignon,” Geoffroy told us. “It was a risk, which may be rewarded now. It’s at the heart of the house’s values – we’re committed to vintage Champagne. My wish is for Dom Pérignon 2003 to remain one of the greatest examples of the vintage in the history of Champagne.”

Guests in London gathered at the über swish Phillips de Pury auction house in St James’s, where black-and-white stills of the Dom Pérignon vineyards in Hautvilliers were projected onto the whitewashed walls, along with an up-to-the-second Twitter feed from invitees across the five cities. In between sips of the freshly released ’03, we were treated to whipped truffled egg, caviar on beetroot jelly, and seared foie gras.

The 2003 vintage left an indelible mark on the region. After a cold, harsh winter, the initial warmth of spring proved deceptive. On 11 April a severe frost destroyed up to 75% of the Côte des Blancs Chardonnay crop. The unseasonal spring was followed by a heat wave as the region experienced its hottest summer for 53 years, resulting in the earliest Champagne harvest since 1822.

Undeterred, Geoffroy embraced the challenge: “At no moment in time was there any question of giving up. Instead, we seized the opportunity to create the 2003 vintage,” he said, adding, “Intensity is the signature 2003. It’s unique and paradoxical, hovering between austerity and generosity. It has tremendous ageing potential, but is also very enjoyable now as it’s so expressive.” Commenting on the 2011 vintage, Geoffroy was less upbeat: “2011 was less spectacular than 2003, it will be hard to predict how it will mature.” Dom Pérignon 2003 will be available in the UK from February 2012 with an RRP of £120.